The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1887-07-21
IN OLDEN TINES
The AvOcAtiOns Pursu. d in the Good Old
Days Of YOre.

1
Days Of YOre.
II may not be generally known--a
least, not by the present geDeratiO !
that there were aVocstiOns pursued 10
Canton. In her early days, that have
since been abandoned. Some OF then
entirely, because supplanted by lnVen
ti0ns that supersede their use, anC
hers because they could not he q
prof1tably followed here rs III O.heI
places.
NAIL MAKERS
The business of making nails for car.
penters' and joiDers' use, was s'arted
| here soon after the close of the wer Of
'l2. by William Marshall on the lOl
southwest corner Market aud ElShth
streets. He procured the iron hall rod
Of diff rent sZ9s from PittsbuTg Gnt
the nails with land shears, aud put Ou
the heads with treqdle machine work.
ed with the foot. At that time nails IN
common nse, sold readily at 25 cents a
pound. Marshall continued he busi
ness until 1924
WHERLWRIGHTa.
The wheelwrlghT business, found m
ploymPnt for four establishmenie
Caleb Penn had log shop on The lOI
now occupied by the Central Swings
Bank; Jacob Bu her where the Barnett
House now stands; Joseph Mn ser Oh
Iuscarawss street, and Joseph HaDdllD
on South Mar ct street. They al made
the small wheel used In spinning fax, a
product then cultivated extensively in
Stark county-the big wheel for wool
and the reel for winding the thread into
cuts. M st OF tbs old people OF TO day
V i'll remember the reel as the iDstIu-
ment with which they played CLOCK
when children. These imp. ements have
loDg since been consigned TO tho garret.
occasionally yOn may see one in the
parlOr kept there as relic of the times
Of our grandmother.
HATTERs.
The hatteTs of town were John Webb,
John Scroggs, Conner Sweeney and Pc.
ter 7, fer. They all had jour or Two
aud several apprentices.
There were bat two KIM of hats made
or worn at that day. The common stiff
wool hat, worth from IS centA 10 Ole
dollar, worn by boys agd tiuemeD,
and the dress hat, made Of tur, sting
from 81 to s., depending 0pnu tie
quality and price Of the fuI. II was the
custom to h We your head me8 uTed aud
wait for the hat to be made. + erybOdy
had q Sunday hat and an every hBy hat
rhe Sunday hat would last for years.
Very little attAHtion was paid TO ia h
ion, until the merchants began to bring
hats from the east for sale. This move
ment on the part Of the merchants met
with violent opposition from the hat
ters. 1t was as they said, "taklng the
bread out Of their children's mouths,
and ought not 10 be encouraged" Not.
Wlthstanding the protests Of the town
harterg the merchants continued to
bring hats for sale, and as they could
sell hner looking hat for less money
than those made In town, II was not
long until the merchants rad mOnop.
oily Of the trade, and one by one the hat.
ters either moved west fr retired from
the business.
TANNKRIKs.
During the early days Of Canton the
business Of converting hides and skins
into leather yielded Q profitable return
for the labor and capital invested. Az
emigration into country increased, the
demand for leather was 90 great that II
was frequently sold at o high price
when only half inlShed. Hides were
plenty and bark abundant.
The dFst lanyard In town Waa started
BY Abraham KrOit ia 1907, corner Of \
Fifth and Orchard. After she death Of
KHo&t, somewhere In the thIFties, lhe \
yard was closed. Next was John Moore. 1
who was given the Max Elbin lol
o0HnOH OF TuseaRAWas and Walnut, A0 q \
nominal figure By the party who had
lhe disposal Of she l0ts donated By l
Wells, the proprietor Of Canton, in con
SideRAtion Of his stsftinR . lanyard
This business was continued here SIX or
eight years. whom Long became IN;
t0lv6d and was forced to leave the 0Oun- \
try. The property was cold and the vAes
filed up. General StidgeH had o yard
on the adjoining lot west. Soon after
his death, II was wound up and .Aban,
Aoned a. o lanyard. The same with
John SteRlinR'S, LOCATED where the Con.
notion depot now stands. James HeE
lett had q yard on the lot corner Of |
Seventh and Piedmont. William FOgle,
Sr., had yard corner OF Third and Rex.
0 ITled on by his son Adam for many
years. The brick brewery, located north
Of the cemetery was originally a tan
yard built by Judge Christmas.
John SluSSer built new yard on the I
lot In 1881. His foreman, VIM.
Dob6s Rfterward built the yard on the I
lot Immediately east. Both these prop
critics after ward passed into the hands |
Of y. d. Slusser and Jacob Hane, who
are the last OF the Flanders and Bait |
Workers left with us.
The Alexander wooden mills, corner
f Cherry and Third, was originally
built and Occupi d ss lanyard by V. R.
Kimball, and here 1t was about thu |
year 1880 that the first stem engine |
was started In town.
There was as many as six lanyard. |
running In Canton at the samo time |
each Eve or elk hands. The
local supply Of hides was not aufIlclen,
b" meet the demand, and hides imported |
from Asia and South America we're Oh |
tained from New York and New Orleans
to meet the deficiency.
As the country became diveated OF |
timber, the supply Of bark fell of, and |
as the competition with imported ieath. |
or materially lpssened the profits, enc
by one the different parties worked out
4 hnlr of00h ond aho onda0ad Aha hunlno.n